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Email us at PSPodcast@sony.com! Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or download here Hey, everybody! Tim and I are back this week to talk about the games they are playing, a busy news week, and some big contenders that are releasing soon. This week also features an interview with Darren Bridges, Lead Designer, Sucker Punch, for Ghost of Yōtei Legends. Stuff We Talked About Next week’s release highlights: The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin | PS5 MLB The Show 26 | PS5 Crimson Desert | PS5 Death Stranding 2 | PC Big Walk hands-on report blog — Explore a puzzle-filled open world in this upcoming multiplayer game, where any moment with friends becomes an adventure. Experience the chaos and cooperation as you journey together. Helldivers 2 new Warbond — Suit up for the Entrenched Division Premium Warbond, arriving March 17 and featuring new weapons, armors, emotes, and rewards to enhance your missions. Tomb Raider I-III Remastered New Challenge Mode — Dive into a free update today introducing Challenge Mode, a variety of new outfits, and a collection of fresh Trophies to earn as you explore iconic adventures anew. Little Nightmares: Altered Echoes coming to PS VR2 — Step into a new dimension in the Little Nightmares universe on April 24. Connect the story between Little Nightmares 1 and 2 as you uncover secrets in a haunting VR adventure. Seven Deadly Sins deep dive — Discover how haptic feedback and PS5 features elevate the anime-inspired world of Britannia when you enter on March 16, bringing the vibrant story and action to life. MLB The Show 26 Early Access — Digital Deluxe Edition players can take the mound early, ahead of the March 17 launch. Enjoy the World Baseball Classic and new Diamond Dynasty updates before the rest. The Cast View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Tim Turi – Content Communications Manager, SIE View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image O’Dell Harmon Jr. – Content Communications Specialist, SIE Thanks to Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. [Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.] View the full article

Last week, we asked you to share some hard-earned loot or gaming prizes using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: BBSnakeCorn shares Snake receiving the Patriot in Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater. SheikhSadi80 shares Sam finding a collection of drinks in Death Stranding. RhodWulfLeon shares Kratos opening a chest in God of War Ragnarök. Georgie_1986_ shares Snake recovering a silly monkey in Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater. SeeJoshsPhotos shares Aloy and the spoils of her hunt in Horizon Zero Dawn. Call_me_xavii shares François special rock from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme, or be inspired by other great games featuring Photo Mode. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image THEME: Ghost of Yōtei Legends SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on March 18, 2026 Next week, share some good team work and action using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured. View the full article

The anime-inspired open-world RPG The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin launches March 16 on PlayStation 5. Ahead of release, we’ve unveiled a brand-new Immersion Trailer that highlights how the game leverages PS5 features to deliver a deeply tactile and responsive experience. Play Video This latest trailer goes beyond simply showcasing the world. By actively utilizing the unique capabilities of PlayStation 5, the game is designed so players don’t just see Britannia. They feel it, react to it, and move within it. Freely explore the vast, faithfully recreated world of Britannia, and experience a heightened sense of realism through nuanced haptic feedback and precise control that makes you feel as though you’ve stepped directly into the anime itself. Every action comes alive at your fingertips The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin features finely tuned haptic feedback through the DualSense wireless controller, physically conveying the tension of battle and the weight of every strike. Dynamic combat responses Distinct vibration patterns are applied to key combat actions, including character switching, combination jump attacks, and powerful ultimate abilities. The impact of strikes, explosive skill effects, and the urgency of taking damage are each expressed through unique rhythms that bring the battlefield’s momentum to life in your hands. Weapon-specific tactile differentiation Vibration intensity and patterns vary according to weapon concepts and skill visuals. Beyond visual differences, players can physically sense shifts in combat style, adding a new layer of immersion to every encounter. Controls you can truly feel The DualSense adaptive triggers enhance both exploration and combat with intuitive, situational resistance. Pressing a button becomes part of the experience itself. Fishing activities When a fish bites, trigger resistance changes instantly. The increasing tension heightens excitement and clearly distinguishes success from failure through tactile feedback. Charged attack skills Certain adventure skills build power based on trigger pressure. Gradually increasing resistance creates the sensation of energy gathering before release, amplifying the satisfaction of unleashing powerful abilities. Mounted weapon operation When controlling cannons or ballistae, players feel heavy trigger resistance that conveys the force of large-scale weaponry. The moment of release delivers a strong, satisfying recoil that reinforces the impact of each shot. Step into the anime world The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin is more than an adaptation. It is designed to let players step directly into the anime universe. Built in Unreal Engine 5, the seamless open world stretches uninterrupted from the royal capital of Liones to sweeping plains and ancient ruins. Lighting shifts, dynamic weather, environmental depth, and dense combat effects are all elevated by the power of PS5 hardware. Players are no longer just watching the anime unfold — they are moving within it, making choices, and forging their own path through Britannia. Strategic depth that elevates combat Players assemble a team of four heroes and can switch between them in real time during battle to adapt to changing situations. Skills and combination abilities evolve based on hero and weapon pairings Three weapon selection paths shape distinct combat styles A tactical structure that rewards sharp decision-making Combined with the DualSense feedback system, combat goes beyond action alone — delivering a tactical experience where sensation and strategy operate simultaneously. Deep solo play, even more intense together The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin naturally bridges immersive single-player progression with strategic cooperative play. Seamless co-op storytelling Main and side quests can be completed in a party. Players can join based on the party leader’s progression, enabling cooperative adventures without friction. Co-op focused dungeon challenges Multiplayer dungeons feature elemental mechanics that require coordination between players with different abilities. Smart role distribution and strategic responses determine success or failure. Explore the world at your own pace — and when greater challenges arise, join forces with allies to overcome them together. The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin launches March 16 on PS5 Wishlist now on PlayStation Store and prepare to journey across Britannia. The legend begins not just on your screen — but at your fingertips. View the full article

MLB The Show 26 Early Access starts today, March 13, and it’s your chance to get a leg up on this year’s competition. Jump start your journey to greatness with all-new challenges at the World Baseball Classic in Diamond Dynasty*, plus experience new Programs, Events, Packs, and Player Items to get you ready to take the field. Pre-order now to receive four-day Early Access to MLB The Show 26 and a Gold Choice Pack. With MLB The Show 26 Digital Deluxe Edition, you’ll also get to enjoy all this: Early access to MLB The Show 26¹ 20 The Show Packs 2 WBC Choice Packs 1 Legend Choice Pack 1 WBC Uniform Pack 1 Equipment Pack Double Daily Login Rewards 1 Cover Athlete Bat Skin Pack 20,000 Stubs Don’t miss out on our pre-order loyalty discount. You will receive 10% off your Digital Deluxe Edition pre-order² if you have purchased any digital version of MLB The Show that’s been released since MLB The Show 21³. The pre-order loyalty discount expires when the game launches on March 17. Early Access gives you so much content and an advanced look at all the action you’ll be playing in MLB The Show 26. Let’s break it down. What’s on deck for Early Access Step up on the world stage Play Video Experience the thrill of international competition at the World Baseball Classic in Diamond Dynasty*. Build your legendary lineup, test your skills, and see if you can turn your club into world champs. Make your mark at all four tournament ballparks, including the electric atmospheres of the Tokyo Dome and Hiram Bithorn Stadium. Earn World Baseball Classic cards to level up your squad and compete in new World Baseball Classic online events. Are you up for the challenge? Leadoff with live content ​​ Step onto the world stage and experience the excitement of the World Baseball Classic as it unfolds in real-time. Early Access gives you the chance to compete at the international tournament in Diamond Dynasty* before anyone else. Earn 130+ player cards, take on four themed Pool Programs highlighting all 20 teams, and watch how the World Baseball Classic shapes the game as the Final’s MVP is added to the Collection. Discover what else is coming to MLB The Show 26: Programs XP Path: Give your team a boost. All earned XP funnels to reward players with packs and Stubs. Occurs every 4 weeks with 1 Boss Choice Pack at the end. Team Affinity: Your go-to place to earn rewards unique to each of the 30 teams. Rep your favorite teams to unlock better rewards to show off your fandom. Single-player Modes Offline Players rejoice. There’s more options than ever to play and grow your DD Prowess: Mini Seasons: Customize how you play by adjusting innings and games across varying themes & bracket styles, including the World Baseball Classic bracket. More mini-season themes will be added throughout the year to always give you fresh content to play with your evolving squads. Diamond Quest: Coach is Back. Put your strategies to the test and come out on top in this rogue-like mode featuring Moments, Mini Boss challenges, & three-inning games. The more you win, the higher your reward drop rates. Multiplayer modes** Multiplayer Programs: If playing against human opponents is more your speed, all your games and progress will be applied to the multiplayer programs. Take on new competition and complete challenges in any multiplayer mode to earn some of the best in-game rewards. Grow your collections Live Series: Build out active MLB team rosters to earn massive rewards including Albert Pujols, Félix Hernández, and Troy Tulowitzki along with team specific legend rewards. Combine your favorite current stars with legends from the past to make your DD squad entirely yours. Become a legend Play Video Choose from more than 220 new and returning Legends* spanning every era of baseball to build your legendary lineup. Take the field with game-changing players like Albert Pujols, Félix Hernández, Ken Griffey Jr, Mickey Mantle, and more. Celebrate Baseball’s rich history in Storylines: The Negro Leagues Season 4 Play Video The next chapter of baseball’s celebrated history is here with Storylines*: The Negro Leagues – Season 4. Experience a symphony of greatness and discover the inspiring trailblazers of the Negro Leagues like John Henry ‘Pop’ Lloyd, George “Mule” Suttles, Mamie “Peanut” Johnson, and Roy Campanella. Homage x MLB The Show apparel drops today Our Homage X MLB The Show apparel collection is also available today on the Homage store. Check out two new shirts and find the perfect fit to celebrate your fandom off the field. MLB The Show 26 Standard Edition is coming soon Early Access is just the beginning. The full launch for MLB The Show Standard Edition is available March 16 at 9 pm PT / March 17 at 12 am ET. Get ready to crush more challenges, earn new rewards, and take your journey further than ever. Ready to make your mark? Stay locked in Be sure to follow @MLBTheShow on social, so you don’t miss a moment of the action this year. Plus, sign up for The Scouting Report, and get rewarded all season long with exclusive monthly Scouting Report Packs and other perks. We’ll see you in The Show! *Internet connection required. **Internet connection and console-specific online multiplayer subscription required. ¹Play from 9 pm PT on March 12, 2026. The game launches for Standard Edition on March 16 at 9 pm PT. 2Discount reflected in cart. Must be signed into your account. Only applies to same platform purchases. ³For Nintendo Switch, since MLB The Show 22 View the full article

The newest game in the Little Nightmares franchise, Altered Echoes, has just been announced. Soon, you’ll be able to enter the Nowhere in first person and touch the Transmission with your own two hands. Play Video Deep within this errant signal, you’ll play as Dark Six as you search for a way to reunite with Six and become whole once more. Let’s explore how this dangerous journey connects with both Little Nightmares 1 and 2 and catch up with some familiar faces. The Transmission A dimension of sight and sound where even the strange rules of the Nowhere are twisted and warped. Gravity is optional and the rules of reality are melting into an endless loop of identical staircases and doors. But somewhere a familiar song is beckoning, leading you through these recursive passages and puzzles as you dodge dangerous traps and even more dangerous Residents. It should come as no surprise that the Thin Man stalks these unending halls, at one with the static and the noise. If he catches you, not even a remnant will remain. The Music Box At the heart of Dark Six’s experience of the Transmission is the inescapable Music Box. It guides Dark Six and pushes away the writhing shadows that hunt her. Even so, under the malignant influence of the Transmission, its simple melody seems to exert an uncanny power over Six that you must try to untangle. Here within the signal, the music box’s song is both the path and the unknown destination. Follow its song. To do otherwise is to lose yourself to the noise. The School The music leads you through your past, through the School where Six was captured by Bullies. Here in the Transmission, the Bullies are gone, and only the Teacher remains. In this childless classroom, the Teacher seems to have somewhat lost the plot and is building endless pillars of books, acting as both the inventor and the minotaur of a maddening labyrinth you must navigate to stay on course. Is this the genuine fate of the Teacher or merely a malicious fantasy given form within the Transmission by the imagination of a resentful Six? The lesson plan is unclear. Survive the maze and maybe you’ll find out. The Train Station Next, the song guides you through the present where dozens and dozens of Guests are traveling towards their final destination. Throughout the cars they slumber, saturated by dreams of future feasts and skittering morsels waiting to be snatched. Their keeper, the terrifying Conductor, prowls the aisles, ready to permanently eject anyone without the proper papers. This is the first time the Guests have been seen outside of the Maw and the questions their presence raises are unavoidable. Where are they going? Are there other eating establishments awaiting their business or is this another misleading distortion from the Transmission? You’ll have to survive if you ever want a chance to work it out for yourself. The Connections The Transmission distorts everything it touches, and yet, an echo of the truth seems to remain. As you struggle to return to Six and find whatever piece of yourself remains intact, the connections you discover between the past, present and possible future may guide or mislead you. Only you can discover what still rings true. Little Nightmares: Altered Echoes will be available on April 24, 2026 for PS VR2. View the full article

You decide the difficulty on your replay with the free Challenge Mode patch, out today! This patch includes 40+ hours of replayability with all new outfits and upgraded abilities, a level modifier to challenge your skills, and 15 new Trophies. Play Video Playing Tomb Raider I-III Remastered gives us that classic 90s vibe but leaves us craving more, so we created this strategy guide for Lara’s new wardrobe to scratch that nostalgic itch. Her new outfits are earned through a series of challenges in each game using the new Challenge Mode to modify level difficulty. They’re more than new skins, outfits add unique enhancements to Lara’s abilities. Refer back to this guide whenever you’re ready to unlock another new fit. Lara’s new wardrobe Paragon of Peace She may look deadly but Lara’s look is less gladiator and more Pax Romana. Established Explorer No mountain tall enough, no valley low enough for a Croft to overcome. Atlantean Bio-Armour Pain is gain. Forget the first aid, only fighting makes her stronger. Master-Mobster From one mobster to another, the shotgun is the only gun you’ll need. Ahab Approved Smell blood in the water? Forget the crocodiles, there’s something deadlier swimming in the deep. Dragon Warrior More fire power, less fire damage. Exactly what you’d expect from a dragon… warrior. Speed Demon Too fast to care if that was a mobster or a mutant. Even if they catch up, they won’t last long. Flying High A super soldier like this only comes out of one highly-classified government facility. Honorary Damned The harder the run the better. Lara went through a dark and undead phase, just like the rest of us. Cooler than Cool Ever been so cold you can’t be burned? Yeah, same for Lara. Challenge Mode Fend off a hoard of apes and velociraptors, sprinkle in some mummies, a couple bats, and you’ve only got a pair of pistols and -5 hp/s regen rate to hold them off. Time to lock and load. Dial in the difficulty on any level you’ve already completed with modifiers in the new Challenge Mode. Don’t want to play hard? Set Lara to 500% health and take a nature walk instead. 15 New Trophies When most people start the first Tomb Raider game they think wow, this is really hard. Not you though. You want the game to be even harder. You want to beat it with higher risks and loftier rewards. Increase your CR (challenge rating) with mods like downgraded weapons, less health, and even more enemies to earn up to 15 new trophies. Share your toughest challenges with #ChallengeMode Challenge Mode is a free patch for Tomb Raider I-III Remastered. Thanks to the community for supporting us at Aspyr, on our journey with Crystal Dynamics, to bring these classics to modern consoles and to celebrate the 30 year legacy that is Lara Croft. View the full article

It’s not long before the monsters come back out to play. Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is swooping in for its March 13 launch on PlayStation 5, with a tale of warring kingdoms and a world on the brink of destruction. Play Video But if you’re unfamiliar with what came before, don’t worry. We’ve got the perfect primer – and with Monster Hunter Stories and Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin available to play from PlayStation Plus Game Catalog,* you’ll be a monstrous lore master in no time. Monster Hunter Stories – the basics Spinning off the hugely popular main series, Monster Hunter, Stories’ goal was to offer a refreshing new approach to the role-playing game franchise. The focus on more tactical turn-based combat over the original’s more action driven style was joined by another big change: the chance to play as a monster Rider instead of a Hunter. This helped develop the concept of ‘Monsties’. Instead of being captured in the wild, Monsties are hatched monsters stolen from dens, raised, given names, and form a bond with their riders. Monsties possess specific abilities, which are either useful during exploration – such as breaking through rocks or traversing the environment – or more combat related. On the subject of combat, the battle system uses a rock-paper-scissors mechanic via three attack types: Power beats Technical, which beats Speed (and so Speed beats Power).‘Reading’ their patterns and movements is key, so you can pick the most effective approach. Although with monsters openly roaming the landscape, you can sometimes choose when to engage, and even initiate sneak attacks. Okay, now let’s really get into it… Monster Hunter Stories – the hunt begins The series wastes no time in introducing the player to its core concept of Monstie bonding, as it begins with the protagonist finding a monster nest and hatching a Rathalos egg. That auspicious first act is a primer to a wider adventure set by the dark events that follow (no spoilers, here). Monster Hunter Stories delivered on its promise to change the way players interact with its fabled beasts. Despite its colourful visuals and youthful characters, it’s not afraid to dip into some of the bleaker topics of its parent series. What you do in the game: Create your character and roam the world, seeking out dens to grow your team of Monsties. Collect eggs to hatch, create a bond with your Monsties and build your party. Battle alongside your Monsties, fighting wild monsters, earning experience points and collecting or buying more equipment and items which can be used in battle. The Rite of Channelling also lets you move a Monstie’s genes between them to unlock new powers. Forge new equipment from subquest rewards, and earn new weapons and armour from completing special Forge Quests offered by blacksmiths. Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin – the series takes flight With its concept now established, Wings of Ruin pushed to amplify everything from the first game. The mass disappearance of Rathalos sets the stage, followed by the emergence of unnaturally enraged monsters. And in the middle of all this chaos, the player character – descended from a legendary Rider – is entrusted with a now precious Rathalos egg, its hatching heralding a world-destroying prophecy. What’s expanded from Monster Hunter Stories: More weapon types, with the Great Sword, Hammer, Sword and Shield, and Hunting Horn from the first game joined by the Bow and Gunlance. Independent computer-controlled buddies and their Monsties accompany you in battle, meaning up to four characters can fight on your side during combat, and damage heavy Double Attacks can be inflicted more frequently. Larger monsters have breakable parts that can be targeted to prevent them from performing certain actions, as well as providing materials to forge or upgrade equipment. Instead of just PvP battles, up to two online players can jump into co-op quests, including trials and expeditions. Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection – what we know Everything leads us to here, the most current addition to the series. As with the previous game, Monster Hunter Stories 3 doesn’t require intimate knowledge of the franchise to dive in. But while Wings of Ruin took the near extinction of the Rathalos to one direction, Twisted Reflection changes things up with the unusual birth of twin Rathalos, arriving during a time of savage conflict. With its customisable protagonist being more experienced than in previous games, Twisted Reflection aims to deliver a slightly more mature story while maintaining the series’ anime aesthetic. Among other enhancements, we can also expect a larger, more accessible semi-open world to explore, more complex side stories, and aggressive Invasive monsters which cannot be beaten with regular battle tactics. But if you’re engaging in more traditional fights, the Wyvernsoul Gauge introduces a system that lets you stagger monsters, making their attacks easier to dodge and leaving them open to your new and hugely damaging Synchro Rush attack. And for the more nurturing among you, the Habitat Restoration system lets you release a hatched monster into the wild to improve the conservation of each region and restore the species. Ready to ride? Now that you have the armour of knowledge, it’s time to put it to the test. Play Monster Hunter Stories and Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin in the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog to sharpen your skills, then jump into Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection on PS5 March 13. *Requires active PlayStation Plus Extra or Premium subscription View the full article

Silent Hill f is a part of a new generation for the legendary horror franchise, one that sees the ethereal and eerie titular setting extending its horrific manifestations into different places around the world. This title was an opportunity for us at NeoBards to harness what makes Silent Hill the psychological horror staple it is and shape a fresh new experience that brings the terror in both familiar and new ways. I’m Al Yang, studio creative director at NeoBards and game director for Silent Hill f. I’m excited to share a slice of my Game Developers Conference (GDC) Festival of Gaming session for the PlayStation community, giving you all a behind-the-scenes look into the systems behind the first melee-only Silent Hill title. ​​ Creating a different Silent Hill In Silent Hill f, the secluded town of Ebisugaoka is consumed by a sudden fog in 1960s Japan, transforming lead character Shimizu Hinako’s home into a haunting nightmare. We initially spent some time considering what types of weapons we wanted to use from Showa-era Japan, doing some prototyping work along the way. With many horror games that emphasize action, there’s gunplay and other ranged combat in the majority of them. What if we flip the script here? It isn’t something horror players are entirely unfamiliar with, but not quite to the extent we’re proposing. When players say they want to play a horror game and that they want to be scared, I think what they really mean is they want to feel tense. Jump scares are scary, but if you’re giving nonstop jump scares, players become numb, and it detracts from the atmosphere. The real fear lives in the anticipation and build-up, which became a guiding philosophy for how we built story and combat in Silent Hill f. Injecting tension into combat There’s intentional design that yields crucial tension for the typical survival horror experience. Slower rhythms with things like aiming and reloading, resource management and scarcity, and pacing. How do we translate these things into our game? There is a lot of data across the history of survival horror on how to create tension despite the power of guns. For example, let’s look at resources when you encounter a monster in your path. Having 4 bullets in this situation creates a very different feeling from seeing that creature and having 100 bullets. The player’s fear and approach change entirely. There are no bullets in Silent Hill f, so we showcase resource management with weapons breaking. Every time you hit a monster, you see the durability bar go down. But you don’t know exactly how much damage you’re doing. It isn’t like an RPG where you see numbers or a bar above the enemy’s head. Having concrete values shown significantly decreases the tension, as a large part of the tension of horror games relies on giving the player incomplete information. How enemies behave is key as well. With guns, monsters will take shots to different body parts and keep shambling unless you hit them in the head or another critical spot, causing them to react differently. We deliver this with the Focus system. With patience and the right timing, you can do a counter or focus attack. It is like aiming down the sights with a gun, so you can hit those vulnerable spots. If you get in a really meaty hit, you’ll see it in how the creature reacts. You’re not quite sure how close you are to defeating the enemy, but you know that your attacks are having an effect. A delicate, horrific balancing act Just as important as building tension, it is important to have a period of release. A way to impact pace and inject those moments of tension release in combat is something we call a master key. It is a system breaker, entirely subverting the gameplay rhythm the player has been engaging with thus far. Many combat systems can be distilled down to a rock, paper, scissors design, where certain weapons work better against certain monsters. That rhythm builds tension and, to release it, we have the master key. In a horror game with ranged combat, a master key could be a grenade or rocket launcher—a weapon or item that doesn’t care about balanced design and just damages your enemy no matter what. You don’t have to think; you turn your brain off and get this thing out of your way. Players are diverse and are challenged by different situations, so it’s important to have systems where they can choose when they want to break out on their own terms. In Silent Hill f, that is the fox arm, which is a part of Hinako’s transformation throughout the game. The focus hit system I mentioned before is also a much lighter sample of that master key experience. Thanks from NeoBards GDC is a major knowledge-sharing hub where developers and other industry professionals share insights into the many different things that bring your favorite games to life, and I appreciate this opportunity to give some insight into how the NeoBards team crafted a new survival horror title while respecting and engaging with the long history of horror gaming that has come before us. For those who have played or those who have yet to play, I hope you enjoyed getting some new insight into this game that we’re very proud of. Silent Hill f is available now on PlayStation 5. View the full article

I’m Tom Guillermin, co-founder and CTO of Sandfall Interactive, and I’m excited to share some insight into how our team created the community and critically acclaimed RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. This blog draws on our session at the GDC (Game Developers Conference) Festival of Gaming, where video game professionals from across a range of disciplines come together to share knowledge and experiences. Our talk, which was delivered alongside our senior gameplay programmer, Florian Torres, explores how our small technical team aimed to give designers maximum creative freedom by enabling them to create and combine gameplay elements. Here, we will highlight examples that we believe this great community will appreciate. The team and our reality Creating video games is a marriage of many disciplines, and the skill set available changes as the team changes. From the bombastic abilities you see in combat to the assets that make up the game’s world map and beyond, efficient and smart structuring and planning put us in the best position to bring Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 to life. The earliest versions of the game were made by Guillaume Broche, CEO of Sandfall Interactive, alone in his bedroom, with occasional help from me. Then we moved on to more advanced prototypes, growing the team with the ultimate goal of creating a vertical slice. Suddenly, there were twelve of us, and in 2022, we went to GDC in hopes of finding a publisher to help us continue development. There, we met Kepler Interactive, whose support meant we could develop an Alpha build and continue adding necessary roles: artists and programmers, especially. Now for an important confession: We’re not much for coding. Our development philosophy at Sandfall is based on the reality that we have limited programming bandwidth, so we focus on what’s most important to delivering a good player experience and helping the creative team achieve their aims. For that reason, we’re big fans of the Unreal Engine for its many core features. It also offers many additional benefits, such as bug fixes and performance optimizations. You have to do some integration work on each update, but as a small team, you try to keep the engine as-is to keep the process straightforward. During production, we also used quite a few external plugins for engine features not native to Unreal, as well as to prototype gameplay features. Unreal Engine Blueprints Because not everybody on the team is a programmer and we needed everyone to be able to contribute to the logic of the game, we used Blueprint visual scripting instead of C++ programming language: it’s a system in Unreal Engine that uses a node-based interface to script gameplay elements directly in the Unreal Editor. Essentially, you have a collection of recipes made of code that you can creatively deploy to get the results you want. It gives designers the ability to use many concepts and tools generally restricted to programmers. With the team able to engage with this shared language, Blueprints allowed us to craft everything that goes into showcasing a skill in-game—character movement, visual effects, camera movement, etc. It’s really similar to any 3D software. You control the camera’s location and rotation, as well as the focal length, which can be animated. We have camera shakes, visual effects, and time dilation… All this contributes to a feeling of intensity over the course of the skill activation. Creative solutions There’s a lot of work that goes into the assets your team makes for these engaging and exciting experiences. You can deploy them multiple times and get very creative in different situations. A different perspective, visual deployment, detailed changes, etc. The world map is a great example of this for us, and it was a major focus in development. It was one of the last levels we created, but it is also the biggest, with the most features. We used elements from other levels to create this one, even if it doesn’t appear that way. Technically, everything related to enemies and battles is the same—interaction, looting, NPCs, dialogues, and so on. We also repurposed art elements from the other levels, in keeping with our emphasis on efficiency. Coding is an incredibly important part of video game development, and Blueprints, which are themselves a different way of coding, are one of the modern ways for aspiring developers or the infinitely curious within the PlayStation community to start creating their own projects. At Sandfall Interactive, programmers create the building blocks—like the Blueprints nodes—and we let the designers play with them. Usually, that means using them in a way different from how the programmers imagined, which is exactly what we wanted. As programmers, our job is to make designers’ lives simpler. There’s truth in many cliches, and we certainly stress this one: Teamwork makes the dream work. It sounds simple, but you need to truly need to lean on each other and create workflows that recognize, encourage, and benefit from that teamwork. We chose an engine that gave us a lot to work with in its base form, grabbed a few external enhancements, simplified the set of tools in our toolbox, reused elements we crafted, and more, all to achieve our goal of realizing our shared creative vision. That’s game development. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is available now on PlayStation 5, and there’s also a two-hour trial for PlayStation Plus subscribers. View the full article

This month, purge Tyranid swarms in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, run the show on the gridiron in EA Sports Madden NFL 26, slip back into stylish heists with Persona 5 Royal, or brave a nightmarish pilgrimage in Blasphemous 2. All these titles and more are available in March’s PlayStation Plus Game Catalog lineup*. And as announced in the latest State of Play, PlayStation Plus Premium welcomes classic arcade fighting in the form of Tekken Dark Resurrection. The full lineup will be available to play on March 17. *Digital PS5 games available to stream from your library will vary over time, region, and country. PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium | Game Catalog View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 | PS5 Purge the relentless Tyranid swarms as legendary Space Marine Titus in a spectacular new campaign. Enjoy intense, gory and fast-paced third-person action with hundreds of enemies on screen, from the creators of blockbuster co-op shooter World War Z. Hold at bay the horrors of the galaxy in epic battles on far-flung planets with your deadly abilities and devastating weaponry. Uncover dark secrets to drive back the everlasting night and prove your ultimate loyalty to humanity. Defend the Imperium as your own Space Marine in endlessly brutal and replayable PvE missions supporting up to three players. Pick from six classes, unlocking new skills and cosmetics as you progress. Wage eternal war on your enemies in ferocious 6v6 PvP matches and bring glory to your faction. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image EA Sports Madden NFL 26 | PS5 Step into the All-Madden legacy this season. Experience generational playmakers, unlock rewards, and celebrate football’s greatest coach. EA Sports Madden NFL 26 leverages a new AI-powered machine learning system trained on thousands of plays from nearly a decade of real NFL data to deliver more explosive gameplay – with new player-specific traits, authentic playstyles, and adaptive counters that match on-field tendencies and strategies of NFL quarterbacks and coaches. Burst upfield like Saquon with updated player movement to reflect the explosive athleticism only the NFL can deliver. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Persona 5 Royal | PS5, PS4 Re-join the Phantom Thieves in a massively expanded and reworked version of the critically-lauded RPG. Expanding on the original 2017 release, Persona 5 Royal comes packed with new characters, confidants, story and locations, and a new grappling hook mechanic for stealthy access to never-before-seen areas. Explore Tokyo, unlock new Personas – demons from within the dream-like dungeons that will fight for you – customise your personal Thieves Den, discover a newly added story arc, cutscenes, alternate endings, and more. Persona 5 Royal retains its signature visual style, while award-nominated composer Shoji Meguro also returns with an all-new soundtrack. Wear the mask. Reveal your truth. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Persona 5 Royal – Ultimate Edition | PS4 Persona 5 Royal Ultimate Edition includes the game and the Persona 5 Royal DLC Pack, including the costume, battle, and persona DLC found in the Persona 5 Royal Kasumi Costume Bundle, as well as the Persona 5 Royal Battle Bundle, and the Persona 5 Royal Persona Bundle. Prepare for an all-new RPG experience in Persona 5 Royal based in the universe of the award-winning series. Don the mask of Joker and join the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. Break free from the chains of modern society and stage grand heists to infiltrate the minds of the corrupt and make them change their ways. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Blasphemous 2 | PS5, PS4 The second scripture in the Blasphemous series portends the return of The Penitent One. Awakened in a strange new land, and displaced from his final resting place, The Penitent One is thrust back into the endless cycle of life, death, and resurrection, with no other option than to explore this perilous new world and uncover its long-forgotten secrets. Hordes of grotesque enemies stand in your way, awaiting final judgement by the brutal hand of the Penitent One, with titanic twisted bosses also lurking in the darkness, waiting for their chance to return you to the grave from whence you came. How you tackle the labyrinthian world remains at your discretion, there is no wrong turn to be made, only scores to settle. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Metal Eden | PS5 Metal Eden is an adrenaline-rush sci-fi FPS. The advanced Hyper Unit Aska is sent on a suicide mission to rescue the citizens’ Cores from the vast monolithic city Moebius once a hopeful new home for humanity now turned into a deadly trap. Blast your way through the Internal Defence Corps in cybernetic warfare, confront the Engineers and uncover the mysteries of the project Eden. Dive into cybernetic warfare against the machine forces that protect the secrets of an artificial world. Fight a diverse roster of tough, agile mecha troops and elemental forces. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria | PS5 The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria follows the Dwarves as they embark on a new adventure to reclaim their legendary home beneath the Misty Mountains. Summoned by Lord Gimli Lockbearer, players take control of a company of Dwarves tasked to reclaim the lost spoils from the Dwarven homeland of Moria, known as Khazad-dûm or Dwarrowdelf, in the depths below their very feet. Players will join forces to survive, craft, build and explore the iconic, sprawling mines. Courageous expeditioners will need to be vigilant as mysterious dangers await. Set in a procedurally generated Dwarven realm of Moria, no two adventures will be alike, and every expedition is traversable either solo or online with companions. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Astroneer | PS5, PS4 Reshape the ground under your feet as though it were made of clay. In Astroneer, players use their deform tool to dig, collect, shape and build anything they wish. Survive on and explore carefully crafted planets that can be entirely deformed and traversed. Our vast solar system includes 7 wondrous planets that players can travel between and explore every inch of, from the entire spherical surface, through treacherous layers of caves, all the way down to the mysterious core. Astroneer is better with friends. Group up with other players and work together to create massive industrial bases or to create fun games in the extensive creative sandbox. PlayStation Plus Premium View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Tekken Dark Resurrection | PS5, PS4 The popular 3D fighting game Tekken 5 Dark Resurrection breaks out of the arcade with all new systems and features! Experience the captivating stories of Armor King and newcomers Lili and Dragunov, unique openings and endings for each character, and even an all-new opening CG movie. Story Battle, Quick Battle, Arcade Battle, and Practice: all the modes you’ve come to expect from the series are here. Fight your way to the top of the leaderboards in Tekken Dojo, deal big damage to strike it rich in Gold Rush, or kick back with your favorite characters in a nice round of Tekken Bowl. Whether you’re in the mood for a hardcore challenge or just some casual mini-games, the options are endless. The highly acclaimed character customization features from the previous game are also included, so use the fight money you earn to purchase items and show off your own unique style! *PlayStation Plus Game Catalog and PlayStation Plus Premium/Deluxe lineups may differ by region. Please check PlayStation Store on release day. View the full article

One of the most striking vehicle designs of the ‘90s, if not of all time, the ’91 Mazda RX-7 Type R and its overly complicated sequential twin-turbo system boosting a rotary engine joins the Gran Turismo 7 lineup. Joining the FD3S are a restomod ’69 Chevrolet Camaro Race-Mod pushing 657.8 BHP from its supercharged V8 and a ’21 Renault Captur S Edition TCe 140 crossover. March’s free update also brings four new events to World Circuit. Update 1.68 for Gran Turismo 7 is available beginning today, March 11 at 11:00pm PT / March 12 at 7:00am GMT / 3:00pm JST.* Play Video New Cars** ’69 Chevrolet Camaro Race-Mod *Can be purchased from Brand Central A restomod of the classic Trans-Am hero Camaro Z28. Introduced in 1966, the Camaro was Chevrolet’s answer to Ford’s Mustang. The high‑performance Z28 was developed to homologate the car for the SCCA Trans‑Am Series and debuted as a focused motorsports model. Power came from a high‑revving 302 cu in (4.9‑litre) V8, with no automatic transmission or air conditioning offered. Campaigned by teams such as Penske Racing, the Z28 went on to claim championship success in Trans‑Am, helping spark a new era of small‑displacement, high‑revving American V8s. Created by Gran Turismo, the Camaro 1969 Race‑Mod is a modern reinterpretation of that original Z28. It preserves the spirit of classic Trans‑Am racing through a low, aggressive stance, while incorporating elements of the contemporary restomod movement popularized at events like SEMA. Chrome trim has been removed and replaced with carbon‑black components, while a wide‑mouth front bumper, pronounced ducktail spoiler, and centre‑exit exhaust sharpen the exterior. Inside, the car adopts a stripped‑back race cockpit with a roll cage, Alcantara bucket seats, and a sequential shifter. Beneath the vintage‑inspired design, however, lies thoroughly modern performance: a supercharged V8 producing 657.8 bhp. The result is a modern Trans‑Am race car that honors tradition while embracing new technology. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image ’91 Mazda ɛ̃fini RX-7 Type R (FD) *Can be purchased from Used Cars The debut model of the third‑generation RX‑7, a car engineered to be the ultimate sports car. The FD3S RX‑7 debuted in December 1991, marking a major evolution for Mazda’s rotary sports car. The “Savanna” name used by previous generations was dropped, and the model was rebadged as the ɛ̃fini RX‑7. Its design focused on lightweight construction, balance, and outright performance. To accommodate wider tyres, the FD3S featured a significantly wider body. Despite the increase in size, extensive use of aluminum for the bonnet, spare wheel, jack, and front and rear double‑wishbone suspension kept curb weight to an impressive 1,260 kg. This obsessive weight reduction became a defining trait of the car. Power came from an updated 13B rotary engine, now fitted with a sequential twin‑turbo system. Output rose to 251.5 bhp and 30.0 kgfm of torque, giving the lightweight Type S a power‑to‑weight ratio of just 4.97 kg per bhp. It became the fastest and most capable RX‑7 Mazda had ever produced, with enormous tuning potential. Over its lifespan, the FD3S saw continual refinement, including improvements to body rigidity, engine management, and ABS. The original Type I evolved through multiple revisions, culminating in the Type VI in 2000. Unable to meet increasingly strict environmental regulations, production ended with the RX‑7 Spirit R in August 2002, closing a 25‑year chapter in rotary sports car history. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image ’21 Renault Captur S Edition TCe 140 *Can be purchased from Brand Central An all‑rounder that blurs the boundaries of the compact SUV class. The Renault Captur is a compact crossover SUV first introduced in 2013, quickly gaining popularity for its urban‑friendly design and impressive versatility. The second‑generation model arrived in 2019, built on an updated platform that delivered improved driving dynamics, ride comfort, and overall refinement. From this generation onward, Renault’s distinctive C‑shaped lighting signature became a defining visual feature. Measuring 4.23 m in length, 1.8 m in width, and 1.58 m in height, the Captur strikes a careful balance between compact agility and SUV presence. A longer wheelbase enhances stability and interior space, while the folding rear seats allow flexible cargo configurations to suit daily life or longer journeys. Powertrain options vary by market and trim level, ranging from 1.0‑ and 1.3‑litre turbocharged petrol engines to diesel and hybrid variants. Notably, the Captur became Renault’s first plug‑in hybrid with the E‑TECH PHEV, drawing on hybrid expertise developed in Formula 1 to deliver smooth, quiet, and efficient performance through electric motor assistance. On the road, the Captur combines agile handling with a stable, comfortable ride. A high‑quality interior and modern infotainment system enhance comfort for both driver and passengers, while the elevated driving position makes maneuvering effortless. Equally suited to urban commutes and winding country roads, the Captur proves itself as a true jack‑of‑all‑trades that exceeds expectations of the compact SUV segment. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image World Circuits The following new events have been added to ‘World Circuits’: European Sunday Cup 400 – Dragon Trail – Gardens Reverse Japanese Clubman Cup 550 – Kyoto Driving Park – Yamagiwa Reverse American Clubman Cup 700 – Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta World Touring Car 800 – Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve *Internet connection required for update.  **Credits (paid or via game progression) required to purchase vehicles. View the full article

You’re about to experience more than a fraction of the power of Invincible’s characters. The upcoming Invincible Vs, a 3-on-3 tag-team fighting game based on Robert Kirkman’s comic series and the Amazon Prime adaptation of it, will hit PlayStation 5 on April 30. But before then, you can try the game with an open beta that’ll include 10 of its superpowered characters, running April 9 to 12. Play Video Executive Producer Mike Willette sat down to tell us a little more about what players can expect in the beta, including its lineup of characters, and what it’s been like creating a fighting game from the Invincible source material. PS Blog: What can players expect from the Invincible Vs beta? Will it include the story mode? Mike Willette: Players can expect to see 10 characters. It’s going to be Invincible, Adam Eve, Omni-Man — with a special thing that they’ll find out about really, really soon that’s associated with Omni-Man — Thula, Robot, Monster Girl, Battle Beast, Rex Splosion, Bulletproof, and — very special — Allen the Alien. Specifically, it’s going to be focused on online play, and ranked play. That’s because we know it’s going to be open to everybody, and so once you go through some placement matches, you’re going to start fighting against people that are closer to your rank. The goal is to, obviously, test things out, but also to get you grouped with people that are of like skill level. We will have our training mode, which includes our tutorial and practice mode. And from practice mode, you can queue up into Ranked [mode]. You can either queue up there or just in our online settings. So you get to try out all the characters, you can go into practice and check everything out, and then go into ranked. We will have our training mode, which includes our tutorial and practice mode. And from practice mode, you can queue up into Ranked [mode]. You can either queue up there or just in our online settings. So you get to try out all the characters, you can go into practice and check everything out, and then go into ranked. Verify your age to view this content. Verify your age to view this content. Does Invincible Vs support any specific PS5 features or enhancements? Yes, we’re working on high-resolution running on PlayStation 5. It is a goal for it being enhanced to support higher resolution while maintaining 60 frames per second. Invincible features some really brutal battles in both the show and the comics. How did you go about treating that brutality and gore? Something that Robert Kirkman is extremely good at is setting the table and the stakes that are involved. And you get to love these characters. Verify your age to view this content. Verify your age to view this content. For us, it wasn’t about being a gore show, right? We don’t want to show you, like, ‘This is your spleen, and it’s attached to—.’ It wasn’t about getting into those details. It was really about showcasing the brutality of these people with powers during conflict, and this is the outcome of that conflict, and it’s brutal, and it’s damaging. It’s not just the gore that you see, but all of our costumes get torn. You get covered in blood. But when you’re super low on health, your idle changes, where you’re exhausted but still ready to fight. So for us, it was expressing all of those things as often as we could, when it made the most sense, when it was authentic. We don’t stop the action for gore or violence. It’s part of the progression of the fight. We never want to take control away from a player whenever we can, and we want to make it part of the action, as if it was a scene in the show. Can you talk about how you go about making Invincible Vs approachable for Invincible fans who might be new to fighting games? Verify your age to view this content. Verify your age to view this content. You actually had the phrase there: approachable. To me, making a game approachable gets misconstrued with accessibility. We’re not trying to dumb down the game. We’re trying to make it easier for you to get into the game so you can fall in love with fighting games like we all have. We looked at, like, what’s the fastest way to teach people combos and combo structure? And some of that was with the auto-combo [feature]. You’re not going to do as much damage, but it’s going to teach you some fundamental rules, of going from normal attacks into special attacks, and you can cancel special attacks into super moves, and from super moves, you can tag in your partner characters, and then you can rinse and repeat. And it starts building on top of itself, showing people the golden path of how combos work, and how easy it can be. How do you make the game fun for both a newcomer audience and the rest of the fighting game community? This is kind of like the second time we’ve taken this kind of approach. If you look back on what we did at Killer Instinct, we wanted to get rid of some of the hidden rules of combo flow. It was really starting at something basic, a building block, and then adding building blocks on top of it, something that you can understand. So start here, then move to the next pattern, and then move to the pattern after them. So as long as you feel good doing the initial set of stuff, our theory is, and we’ve seen it happen, you’re like, ‘I was mashing buttons, but I did something really awesome. I want to learn more about awesome.’ It’s going to get you to that next thing. Verify your age to view this content. Verify your age to view this content. So having combos that feel really good, even the auto ones, again, doesn’t have to do the most damage, but it feels good and does something flashy — it’s an important carrot to get you to do the next thing, and the next thing after that, right? Quarter Up developed an original story for Invincible Vs, working with creator Robert Kirkman and Helen Leigh, the writer and co-executive producer of the Invincible series. What has that collaboration been like? It’s interesting because Robert loves video games. He loves fighting games. So it’s not too hard to say, ‘Hey, within this structure, what kind of story do we want to tell?’ And it is really collaborative, because we get to say, ‘Hey, we have these ideas. How can we execute on these ideas and with these types of characters?’ And the writers will be like, ‘This is a way that we could bridge these gaps,’ or ‘These are very interesting premises.’ And for us, it was really selling the experience that you’re playing, like, a special episode of the show. It could potentially exist within the timeline, so just sit back and have fun. View the full article

Keep your head down and keep your feet dry, Helldiver, because this is definitely going to get messy. The Ministry of Defense has authorized the deployment of a new Premium Warbond perfect for frontline assault squads who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. Play Video Weapons & Stratagems Let’s dig into the latest offensive items included in Entrenched Division*! You’ll be bucking all those pesky, modern conventions with the B/FLAM-80 Cremator in hand. This heavy support flamethrower sprays a continuous column of flame, thanks to its massive backpack fuel tank. ​​ In case that’s not enough to fan the flames for you, try the SMG/FLAM-34 Stoker. This versatile submachine gun primary packs two punches at once: iron sights and an incineration attachment. If you don’t want to use fire to clear the tunnels, consider using gas! The A/GM-17 Gas Mortar Sentry is an automated turret that fires gas shells–just make sure to stay upwind of those clouds, Helldiver! The P-69 Veto is a stylish secondary pistol, loaded with jet-assisted rounds that let you keep your distance from encroaching hostiles–perfect for the discerning squad commander. And if you need to lob a grenade out of the trench, we recommend the G-48 Giga Grenade throwable, which might be too heavy to throw great distances, but it makes up for range with a massive blast that will break up the oncoming enemy into much smaller, more manageable pieces. And most thrillingly of all: the CQC-73 Entrenchment Tool is now available for your regular loadout as a secondary weapon! No more rifling through deceased colonist’s belongings to find a shovel–you’ll be digging ditches as soon as your hellpod lands! Armors & Capes Stay sheltered from artillery in vintage style with two brand new armors! You might want to bring some extra supplies as you shovel your way to the front line. The CPG-48 Sapper is a medium armor with plenty of pouches and big pockets to store your battlefield essentials. In fact, it comes with a version of the Concussive Padding armor passive–Grenadier–which provides explosive damage resistance and lets you store extra throwables! To complete your entrenched look, use this armor with the Dignity of Toil cape and player card to honor your most useful everyday carry tool: your shovel. But let’s say you need to look more official to motivate the squad stuck in the battle trenches. For that, you’ll want the CPH-26 Commandant light armor with–as pristine as your service record, with a high collar to match your high ambition to move up through the ranks. It’s the kind of fit that says I could court-martial you at any time, and pairs perfectly with the Crest of the Unsullied cape and player card. It also has its own version of the Concussive Padding passive–Hazmat–which provides both explosive and gas damage resistance, as well as reduced sidearm recoil. Patterns, emotes, and more Of course, you don’t want to use antiquated equipment, but maybe you’d still like to give your items an old luster just for fun. Give your loadout the lived-in, battle-worn look of a real soldier with the Heritage Olive pattern, available for your hellpods, FRV, Pelican, and exosuits. And if we’re playing as old-fashioned soldiers, why not greet each other the old-fashioned way with a Diplomatic Handshake! You might be gassing and burning your enemies, but you keep the squad dynamics classy. Finally, equip the Mudskipper player title to really delve deep into the fantasy of an entrenched soldier on the frontlines. The Entrenched Division Premium Warbond is dropping on March 17! Can you dig it, Helldiver? *Requires base game, paid purchase of Super Credits, and game progression to unlock. View the full article

Time to take up your blade once more, warrior. Like its predecessor, Ghost of Yōtei’s rich single player campaign is just one side of a Zeni Hajiki coin, as Sucker Punch Productions brings its acclaimed PS5 adventure’s combat thrills to a supernatural plain in Ghost of Yōtei Legends. Launching tomorrow, March 10*, this online co-op multiplayer mode builds on the wonderful foundations of Ghost of Tsushima’s own Legends mode while reimagining Yōtei’s new mechanics and threats in a mythical, mystical spin fit for any storyteller’s fantastical yarn. Play Video The mode was announced last year, and fully revealed in this past February’s State of Play. Today, the studio – in the form of Legends Lead Designer Darren Bridges, kindly taking time out from putting the final polishes to the mode – joined us to break down what awaits players when they download the update on March 10. The mode is available at no additional cost for all owners of Ghost of Yōtei.** The mode has been in production as long as the single player campaign “We had a core team working on multiplayer throughout [Ghost of Yōtei’s] development. We were reacting and responding and pulling the systems in, figuring out how they would work in a multiplayer context. As [the main game] finished, people moved over to work on Legends, flesh it out. It’s an interesting development process. There’s a lot of stuff that looks like a prototype for a long time, and then when the team moves in, it’s a really rapid escalation and improvement. It’s like an advent calendar: we wake up every morning and see something new. There’s so much new content, and that the game is getting amazing and beautiful so quickly once the rest of the team jumps in to contribute. So it’s a really fun experience.” View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Examples of the Samurai class It’s a Mythic Tale spin on the Yōtei Six “The Yōtei Six are bosses, warlords, that haunted Atsu’s story. Legends is a retelling of that way later; years, even centuries after the fact. A lot of the details have washed away. These big characters have been exaggerated. Instead of fighting powerful warlords, you’re fighting 15-foot demonic bosses. It makes enemies a suitable challenge for multiple players.” Like the single player story, the Yōtei Six have followers you must face as well “Each boss has a faction of enemies that come with them. That includes sub-bosses that are different for each [of the Six’s domains] and are themed around the abilities of the boss, so they all connect. So for example, the Kitsune has an elite soldier called the Snow Woman, who has frost and cold abilities. The Snake has a summoner.” View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Examples of the Archer class Different Classes help you face different challenges, but you can play your way “We want to give players different roles they can play into, to be able to complement each other, and you can split and focus on different enemies based on the weapons you have. But if you all want to play, say, Samurai, then you can and will be able to solve all the challenges put in front of you. But each Class has a focus weapon. So for instance, the Samurai has the Odachi, the Archer, the Yari. The Mercenary has dual katanas. The Shinobi has the Kusarigama, Some of their tech tree builds toward that. Some of their gear is based around that. But they’re not limited to those exclusively. They can use other weapons too. We also have things like quick fire weapons, so some abilities that are on cool down. “Each class has their own tech tree, so there is build crafting based on the gear you unlock and the abilities you unlock and choose.” Four difficulty levels let you decide how fast (or challenging) you want your XP gain to be “Every mission is replayable and there are four difficulties: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. As you play those, you’ll face different enemies, different challenges. The higher difficulty you play, the faster you’ll earn XP, the faster your character class will advance, and the better loot you’ll get based on. “There’s recommended gear levels for each difficulty. So if you are kind of signing up for a mission that is at a higher difficulty that your gear level is set too. We’ll give you a warning.. but we’ll also say, Hey, go for it. Some folk want to slowly move their way up the difficulties. Some want to jump into the highest difficulty unlocked and struggle. That’s great. We support both of those approaches.” View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Examples of the Mercenary class Prepare for some truly unique Legends cosmetics “One of the most amazing parts of working on game development is collaborating with professionals in a completely different discipline, and just seeing the things that [the art team] turn out. Obviously, with the mode being supernatural and fantasy, we can really dive into completely different ideas and really wild stuff [for cosmetics]. There’s one helmet that has a bunch of eyeballs on it, that look around while you’re wearing it. And all this content is available for Ghost of Yōtei owners at no additional cost. So all of this is unlocked just through gameplay.” More on the mode’s different mission types… “Story missions have you dealing with these legends as told by the storyteller, who is narrating the events as you play through them. There are two player story missions, while Incursion missions are the culmination of that. There’s one Incursion for each of the four bosses available in the launch version – The Spider, The Oni, the Kitsune, the Snake. Story missions are themed around them, then you enter their domain in four-player Incursions, fight your way to them and ultimately face off against them. “Survival is a four-player, area and wave defense type of mode. Four missions, each themed around one of the bosses. Each mission has you defending three locations. Each has a unique blessing and curse. So if you hold an area, you could activate a blessing to, say, summon a spirit bear, or activate fire spirits to attack enemies. But if you lose your hold, a curse activates… So now you have a shadow bear that will hunt you down and attack. So it leads to the matches being really dynamic.” …and the upcoming Raid. “The Raid launches next month in which you’ll face the last two of the Yotei Six, the Dragon and Lord Saito.*** It’s four-player, hardcore content: you actually need four players to complete it. You can’t do it with fewer and you want to have players that you can communicate and coordinate well with. We view this as the most co-opy co-op. The rest of the Legends missions are co-optional. We provide opportunities for you to work together, but we don’t ever want to make it a blocker. This though? This is for four players. Mark my words. You cannot win without four players.” View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Examples of the Shinobi class You may never make it out of the game’s lobby “Ghost of Tsushima’s lobby was a flat 2D menu. Our goal in designing [this mode’s] lobby was to give you something you can do while you wait for friends to join. You can go look at the feats you’ve completed and unlock cosmetics. You can tweak your build, adjust your tech tree. But the lobby also has some light PvP elements, such as Zeni Hajiki, the coin-flicking game that was in the single player campaign. We heard players wishing they could play that against friends (so did our QA team), so we did! “There’s also a Bamboo Strike score challenge, with mini leaderboards that you can brag against your friends. There’s a training area if you want to get good at perfect parries in a low pressure environment, or to just test your build. So it’s just meant to be a place that while you’re waiting or you’re in between rounds, we give you interesting things to do.” Ghost of Yōtei Legends is available as an update to Ghost of Yōtei owners at no additional cost on March 10. *Ghost of Yōtei Legends will launch on March 11 in some territories including Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. ** Internet connection and account for PlayStation required. PlayStation Plus subscription (sold separately) required for online play or multiplayer. PS Plus is subject to recurring subscription fee taken automatically until cancellation. Age restrictions apply. Terms apply: play.st/psplus-usageterms ***Available in future update (patch version TBA) View the full article

Hi, I’m Ines from Tiny Roar and we’re thrilled to announce that Lou’s Lagoon, our high-flying adventure, will be landing on PS5 later this year! Today, I’m excited to share more details about the game and take you behind the scenes to show some of the work that has gone into creating the places you’ll visit, the people you’ll meet, and the journey you’ll go on. A fierce storm and a missing uncle Lou’s Lagoon begins with you arriving on Limbo, a tropical archipelago that has been hit by a nasty storm; worse still, your beloved Uncle Lou was caught up in the storm and is missing. You’ll take to the skies in your trusty seaplane to trace Lou’s journey across Limbo’s islands and use a clever arsenal of gadgets to rebuild the communities and help residents back on their feet. Play Video We hope that you’ll fall in love with the colorful world we’ve created and that you’ll get swept up in Limbo’s peaceful way of life as you hop from island to island, each with a charming cast of islanders, in search of clues to Lou’s disappearance. Bringing Limbo to life When we started working on what would become the Limbo archipelago, we took a lot of inspiration from classic adventure titles from the 90s and 00s, with island settings. We felt a tropical archipelago really fit the vibe we wanted for the game – easy-going and a world you can immerse yourself in without stressing out (there’s enough of that in real life!). As Limbo is an archipelago, we enjoyed the opportunity to come up with ideas for fun thematics across the islands. When it came to designing the individual islands, we went through a lot of ideas including flying pyramids, an icy octopus island, and a creepy ghost ship but, in the end, we landed on a set of diverse island themes with our own unique stamp on them that should still feel familiar to anyone who had played adventure games before. Take Gleam Reef, for instance. We quickly landed on the idea of an aquatic vibe, featuring huge pink corals and we wanted its residents to fit in with this theme, which led to the creation of the Vooi. The Vooi are lanky and agile jellyfish-based islanders who we like to think lived underwater for a long time and have recently learned to live on land. They’re very chilled and love to ‘go with the flow’ but this means they sometimes accept their fate too easily, maybe you can help them with that? We took a similar approach when creating the wildlife that can be found across Limbo, building them as combinations of real animals. The Beever is part bee, part beaver. The Deergoat is… well, that one’s not hard to figure out. Each of these creatures carry different resources that you’ll need to collect and craft with as you help islanders and rebuild their communities, and we’ve worked hard to give players loads to discover whenever they land on an island for the first time. Ready for takeoff? As I mentioned earlier, you’ll travel from island to island in your seaplane and we’ve put a lot of effort into making flying feel satisfying and fun, whether you’re an experienced pilot or just discovering the fun of flying for the first time. You’ll see ring challenges throughout the skies above Limbo. We hope that these challenges offer a fun way to get to grips with piloting your seaplane. Why not try and beat your personal best as you get more confident behind the controls? Once you touch down, you’ll need to get to work on clearing up debris, gathering resources and crafting items to help restore the islands to their vibrant, pre-storm state (or even better?). Your key tool – and one of my favourite tools in the game – to help you do this is the Swirler 2000, which can grab storm debris and loose resources across the islands. For anyone who has played Slime Rancher, it’ll feel immediately familiar as you’re able to easily collect materials on the move. The whole Tiny Roar team are incredibly excited to be bringing Lou’s Lagoon to PS5. Stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to release later this year and be sure to follow Lou’s Lagoon on social media. We can’t wait for PS5 players to explore Limbo and track down Uncle Lou! View the full article

Big Walk begins the way all great co-op games should: a few friends in the same space, immediately poking at everything just to see what happens. I was able to bring two friends from the PS Blog team along to my hands-on session with House House’s upcoming cooperative adventure, because this is not just a game you play with friends. It is a game about what happens when you do. Play Video We started in a showroom purpose-built to help us find our Big Walk legs. We ran, jumped, crouched, sat, and generally threw ourselves around until movement felt natural. The first standout detail was independent arm movement. R2 and L2 raise each individual arm, and R1 and L1 point them forward. It feels instinctive, and while it may sound trivial, all that arm flailing quickly becomes a shared language. Waving, hand-raising, and other erratic gestures start to mirror natural in-person conversation, with plenty of pointing and “look over there!” From there we graduated to the basics: grabbing and lifting objects (and, critically, each other), pressing buttons, throwing balls, shaking bells. Once we felt in control of our limbs, we headed out for the promised big walk. The walk begins Stepping out into the open air, two things became immediately clear. One: the outside comes with a day/night cycle. We quickly realized we’d need to carry the light sources scattered around the area to stay effective in our exploration after dark. Two: proximity chat is the conversational glue that keeps your cooperative crew tight. Drift too far and you’ll lose the conversation, and with it, the shared moment. The result is a gentle push toward staying together, and there was a genuine sense of concern whenever one of our party strayed into the bush without us. Later, there were times when splitting up and organizing made sense, but Big Walk wants to be a shared experience rather than people operating in parallel. Even when you’re briefly apart, the game nudges you toward staying in contact. It’s easy to imagine that becoming its own challenge once you’re relying on tools and whatever the world gives you to keep connected. During our walk, we found telescopes to watch other players as they solved a puzzle far away, and flares which could be used to reunite with lost companions, so there will no doubt be other options in the final adventure. Curiosity as a compass Now that we were outside, we did what players always do in a new world: we followed our natural instincts toward whatever looked interesting. This did not lead us astray. The island seems huge, and a few colourful structures stand out in the distance against the natural landscape. They demand investigation, so we walked. In fact, the moments between the puzzles were as delightful as the puzzles themselves. The theorising and chatting away are a core part of the fun. Once we reached a structure, we’d circle and examine it from every angle. Someone would point out a detail. Someone else would try an interaction; flick a switch, pull a lever, unlock a door. After a bit of back and forth, it would click. We’d understand what it wanted from us, and the game would open the path forward. And so we walked again. Here for the vibes Big Walk gave us exactly what we wanted: a space to get lost with friends. Shared joyful moments punctuated by contemplative exploration, friendly chatter, small bursts of dopamine when teamwork paid off, and an undercurrent of playful chaos and mischief. We ruined our own plans. We fixed them together. The island became a playground. The proximity chat and physical expressiveness offered by developer House House’s design lay the groundwork for connection, while the rules, physics and objects of the world make it a perfect sandbox for high jinks and shenanigans. We left our preview cackling about our favourite moments, and with a group chat full of plans to return. Gather your friends. Two to twelve players can go on a whimsical Big Walk together on PS5 when the game launches into PlayStation Plus as a Monthly Game later this year. View the full article

Last week, we you to share heroic gaming moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: lunar9p shares their hero flying on the back of a massive eagle in Dragon’s Dogma II. themarkplumb shares their hero raising their sword in Echoes of the End. crimsonashtree shares Connor being a hero in Detroit Become Human. PhotoModeColin shares their heroic Space Marine in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marines II. s_dream44 shares Batman overlooking Gotham in Batman: Arkham Knight. Photomode_Raro shares Cal Kestis in combat in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme, or be inspired by other great games featuring Photo Mode. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? THEME: Prize SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on March 11, 2026 Next week, share some hard-earned loot or in-game prizes using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured. View the full article

Today’s Capcom Spotlight presentation shared details on a mix of titles, including the upcoming releases of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection and Pragmata, as well as news on Street Fighter 6 and Mega Man Dual Override. Play Video The launch trailer for Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection gives you a dramatic look at the upcoming turn-based, story-rich, RPG set in the Monster Hunter universe. In this epic adventure, you are the heir to the throne of Azuria, and the leader of a group called the Rangers. While the two countries of Azuria and Vermeil stand on the brink of war, an ecological threat known as the Crystal Encroachment threatens the fabric of the world. Together with your fellow Rangers and your monsties – monster partners that you’ll form bonds with as a rider – you’ll journey towards unknown lands on a search to uncover the truth. Meet new friends, discover new lands, and bond with iconic monsters from across series history in a sprawling and memorable RPG adventure. We can’t wait to welcome you to the world of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection when it launches next week, March 13. Riders and Hunters alike with past save data in Monster Hunter Stories, Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin, Monster Hunter Rise, and Monster Hunter Wilds can receive different bonus outfits for each. And, if you link your Capcom ID account to your PlayStation account, you’ll receive the Catcom Works outfit for Rudy. Try the demo now, and transfer over your save data to the full game next week. Play Video The long wait for Pragmata is nearly over. Even better, we’re excited to share that the game will now arrive one week earlier than its previously announced launch date. The new launch date is…April 17! In our latest trailer, we showcased glimpses at never-before-seen locations and enemies, new abilities for Hugh, and a bit more of the mystery surrounding the lunar research station’s rogue AI: IDUS. We also showed how the Shelter – your safe space away from the action – can continue to grow, as well as your helpful new bot assistant in the Shelter, Cabin. Don’t worry, this one is a friend. Fight as Hugh and Diana together to escape the lunar research station and make it back to Earth. Can they make Diana’s dream of visiting Earth a reality? Pragmata launches on PS5, April 17. Get familiar with Pragmata’s tactile, hybrid gameplay that mixes shooting and hacking with the free Sketchbook Demo. Mega Man Dual Override powers up on PS5 and PS4 in 2027. Shortly after we first announced the game at The Game Awards 2025, we kicked off the Robot Master Design Contest. We asked the community to design a Robot Master who has a right arm with immense suction powers, and out of many entries, we’ve narrowed it down to the final six designs. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image The development team will now choose one winner that will appear in the final game when it launches, so stay tuned. While you wait for the launch of Mega Man Dual Override, check out Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection, coming to PS5 and PS4 on March 27. The collection includes seven total games: Mega Man Star Force Pegasus Mega Man Star Force Leo Mega Man Star Force Dragon Mega Man Star Force 2 Zerker x Ninja Mega Man Star Force 2 Zerker x Saurian Mega Man Star Force 3 Black Ace Mega Man Star Force 3 Red Joker Experience these games with enhanced graphics and music, new customization features, and new online features like matchmaking across all three titles, Friend, Casual, and Ranked Matches, and improvements to trading functions and the Brother list. Acknowledge the arrival of the dark devil, Alex, when he makes his entrance on March 17 as the third fighter from Street Fighter 6 Year 3. The Alex Arrives Fighting Pass will also be available with new content across multiple game modes. Play Video Outfit 4 for Dee Jay and Elena also launches on March 17, the same day as Alex. That’s all from the Capcom Spotlight. Be sure to check out the full presentation on our official Capcom channels for more info on the games above. View the full article

Mouse: P.I. For Hire‘s rubber hose cartoon art style brings it a whole lot of absurd, slapstick humor, which pairs perfectly with its “boomer” shooter gameplay. But underpinning it all is a noir detective story that can be dark and adult as well as goofy and comedic, giving Mouse a fascinating depth that goes beyond its toon inspirations. I recently went hands-on with an early level from Mouse: P.I. For Hire and got a sense of its fast-paced combat, twitchy boss battles, and underlying narrative that mixes noir detective elements and slapstick humor. In search of a mad scientist The preview level I played sent protagonist private eye Jack Pepper to the hidden laboratory of Steve Bandel, a magician and friend of Jack’s who also appears to be a mad scientist. Bandel has gone missing, so Jack follows up on a tip to find the secret lab — accessed by taking an elevator hidden in an outhouse in the middle of the woods. The lab itself is swarming with strange cultists, armed with weapons ranging from tommy guns and pistols to clubs and wooden shields. Like the shooters Mouse draws its inspiration from — games like Doom, BioShock, and Quake — your best defense is to always be moving. Jack can employ a quick dash move when you press R3 or a slide with L3, giving you a momentary burst of speed to dodge incoming attacks, and a double-jump on the X button that can help you take advantage of the verticality of most arenas. When you need a little space, hitting Circle lets you kick enemies to push them back. Jack’s arsenal gives you a number of options for dealing with enemies, ranging from his fists to a semi-automatic pistol, the tommygun-like “James Gun,” and a powerful double-barrel shotgun. Each one can be upgraded between levels to power them up and add alternate fire modes. You can also fling sticks of dynamite at enemies and find special power-ups within levels, like a hot pepper that adds fire damage to your weapons for a short period. And not long into your investigation, you uncover something Bandel must have been working on — a new gun called the Devarnisher. This weapon fires turpentine rounds that deal damage to enemies over time, eventually melting the ink right off their bones. Bot Betty bosses The level included three different boss fights. Each boss was a robotic version of Betty, Bandel’s former assistant from his magician days. You learn that Bandel attempted to recreate Betty after her death, and as Jack comments, he got a little weird with it. Each version of Betty is more complete than the last, bringing different elements into the fight before they all culminate in the most complete Robo-Betty, the final boss of the level. Like with fights against other enemies, speed, positioning, and quick reactions are essential when battling Mouse: P.I. For Hire’s bosses. But unlike other fights, the arenas are more constrained, so it’s a lot tougher to get away from enemy attacks. Jack’s dash is key to survival in tough fights. It can get him clear of the “gamma ray” laser beams wielded by the first Robo-Betty, or the devastating blades attached to the arms of the second. The final boss fight brings it all together, with a Robo-Betty that’s fast, aggressive, and capable of dishing out cartoon bombs that will chase you around the arena while she tries to get in close and pummel you. Every so often, she’ll activate the gamma ray attack the first Betty employed, forcing you to hide from it behind a glass wall to avoid getting zapped. During that time, you have a chance to find and hit a button on the wall to blast Betty with a laser of your own, briefly disabling her and allowing you to unload on the bot until it’s destroyed. A serious story in a cartoon world Between the goofy animations that come with defeating enemies, absurd jokes like a sign marking a “Totally Normal Wall,” and the bounciness of everything from ammo pickups to your own weapons, cartoon-style comedy is baked into every element of Mouse: P.I. For Hire. The level was also loaded with secrets, which often hide items that give you insights about the city of Mouseburg where the game takes place, and the political strife affecting its residents. To unlock safes and padlocks to find those secrets, you’ll have to use your tail to trip each lock’s tumblers. The combination of elements creates a fun tone that’s both absurd and thoughtful. The story itself seems to be a complex one, drawing on noir tropes and ideas and bringing a twinge of adult-oriented thinking to the hilarious world. While Jack’s willing to throw out one-liners, he’s also thoughtful about the information and clues he’s coming across. Searching for clues Completing the lab earns you a clue about what happened to Bandel, but it’s just a piece of the puzzle. As the level wraps up, we get a look at Mouse’s world map, full of Mouseburg locations that will presumably house other levels. In the center is Jack’s PI agency, and returning allows you to wander around the block, where you can visit other characters and upgrade your weapons. In the office, you can put all the clues you uncovered on Jack’s case board, where hopefully, the picture of the case will start to come into focus. The preview build didn’t give much of a sense of how the investigation portion of the game works, but it’s clear from the story that you’ll be talking to a lot of characters to gather information and pick up leads, developing the case over time. While the preview level I saw was mostly focused on gunplay, it also highlighted how much attention Mouse: P.I. For Hire is dedicating to its story. Between noir-style narration from Jack, journals and clues you’ll find that tell the story of each level, and characters you’ll meet who provide more insights into the politics and intrigue happening in Mouseburg, Mouse: P.I. For Hire looks to be delivering a deep, twisting mystery. You can start hunting for clues when Mouse: P.I. For Hire releases on April 16 on PlayStation 5. View the full article

The loss of a loved one is hard to move through. In Fishbowl, Alo grieves the passing of her grandmother while trying her best to take care of work, chores, and herself. Experience a story filled with hope, friendship, and the will to keep going when Fishbowl launches on April 2 on PS5. The two of us have been working on Fishbowl for the past five years, and we are happy to have it finally in your hands. Leading up to release day, we are excited to announce that the pre-orders for Fishbowl are now open! Play Video Take care of your home, yourself, your belongings, and your mood Much like real life, Alo’s mood determines the things you can and cannot do in Alo’s home. Take a warm shower, have a yummy lunch, keep yourself hydrated, and taking care of yourself will make Alo sprout into a fresh mood. On the other hand, doom-scrolling social media or binge-watching when you’re supposed to be working will tank her mood down to a gloomy cloud. As new activities get unlocked inside Alo’s home, whether you are ‘in the mood’ to do them will have a big role to play in your story. We hope the moodmeter in Fishbowl encourages our players to keep their own moodmeter up IRL after they play Fishbowl. Stay in touch with people to help you keep your loneliness at bay Although Alo is alone in her apartment, she has the company of people who care deeply about her through video calls. In Fishbowl, video calls feature a branching mechanic that gives you choices about how to respond. The options you receive showcase the complexity of Alo’s mind during a tough time. The sprout option is usually vulnerable, honest, and grounded in her true feelings. The moon option is melancholic, impervious, and sometimes the kind to brush things off, and the cloud option is that of self-doubt, avoidance, and at times feeling like an imposter is your own life. ​​ Work from home as a video editor, meet new colleagues, and learn new skills Work days are usually packed with a fun matching game where your task is to place the correct video snippet into its designated track. As you get familiar with the game, you will meet colleagues who teach you how to slow down the file if you need to, undo a mistake that you made, or even become invincible by taking on the skill of an expert just for a little bit. Enjoy the company of your colleagues, keep up with the video files, and do your best each day. Unpack your late grandmother’s belongings and rediscover your past In Fishbowl, every object has a story to tell, and you uncover these objects by playing a sliding puzzle game. Objects that give you happy, light, and joyful memories are easy to unpack, while those that are full of heaviness are harder to rummage through. Emotions thoughtfully run across the simplest interactions and mechanics in Fishbowl. The objects in these puzzles are full of lore and sentimentality and also showcase Indian culture, our beautiful arts and crafts like block printing, woodwork, embroidery, and much more. Plunge into heartfelt childhood memories, meet old friends, revisit old tales With the help of an unlikely companion in the form of a magical toy fish, Alo relives sweet memories from her past. Evenings spent at the park with her grandma, avoiding homework with her childhood best friends, and shivering under a blanket while watching a horror movie or two. Inspired by one of our favourite Studio Ghibli films, Only Yesterday, we use memories as vignettes to tell you more about Alo’s journey, her core memories, and the things that shaped her into the adult she is today. Explore a dark world of dreams where the choices you make reveal a different past While Alo struggles through grief, her suppressed emotions manifest in her dreams. The way you live each day with Alo at home will be connected to the choices you are allowed to make in the dream sequences. These choices will uncover different stories from Alo’s past and will also guide your journey to the present. There are many parts of Fishbowl peppered with little secrets that connect to the ending of our story. Remember, no matter what, you got through the day. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Fishbowl’s pre-orders are now open, and we have a special pre-order bonus for our PS5 players. If you pre-order the game, you will get to experience Fishbowl 72 hours before the official launch day. We are close to the finish line, and we need all your support to take us through. You and Alo are in this together, and we can’t wait for you to spend a month at home with her. View the full article

It’s time to see which PS5, PS4, PS VR2, and free-to-play games topped last month’s download charts. February saw nothing but love for zombies and Leon as Resident Evil Requiem topped the US/Canada and Asia PS5 charts. Check out the full listings below. What titles are you playing this month? PS5 Games US/CanadaAsiaResident Evil RequiemResident Evil RequiemNBA 2K26Nioh 3ARC RaidersIt Takes TwoEA SPORTS Madden NFL 26EA SPORTS FC 26Call of Duty: Black Ops 7Black Myth: WukongGrand Theft Auto VNBA 2K26REANIMALForza Horizon 5EA SPORTS FC 26Resident Evil 4MinecraftSplit FictionGod of War Sons of SpartaREANIMALUFC 5DRAGON QUEST VII ReimaginedNioh 3Gran Turismo 7It Takes TwoYakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark TiesHigh On Life 2Marvel’s Spider-Man 2EA SPORTS College Football 26Hogwarts LegacyNHL 26Resident Evil VillageMarvel’s Spider-Man 2UFC 5Forza Horizon 5Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in HawaiiHELLDIVERS 2Grand Theft Auto VResident Evil 4Stellar Blade *Naming of products may differ between regions *Upgrades not included PS4 Games US/CanadaAsiaRed Dead Redemption 2Red Dead Redemption 2Gang BeastsKingdom Come: DeliveranceA Way OutOvercooked! 2Resident Evil 6A Way OuttheHunter: Call of the WildResident Evil 6RESIDENT EVIL 5EA SPORTS FC 26Middle-earth: Shadow of WarIt Takes TwoMinecraftDoor Kickers: Action SquadGrand Theft Auto VRESIDENT EVIL 5FOR HONORTEKKEN 7Batman: Arkham KnightShadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive EditionUnravel TwoWatch Dogs 2NBA 2K26Grand Theft Auto VCall of Duty: Black Ops IIINeed for Speed HeatResident EvilBare Knuckle IVGod of WarResident Evil: Revelations 2The ForestMortal Kombat 11Overcooked! 2Marvel’s Spider-Man Game Of The Year EditionMafia: TrilogyMafia: Definitive EditionSTAR WARS Battlefront IIGod of War *Naming of products may differ between regions PS VR2 Games* US/CanadaAsiaAlien: Rogue Incursion VRHorizon Call of the MountainPavlovAlien: Rogue Incursion VRCreed: Rise to Glory – Championship EditionBeat SaberAmong Us 3D: VRMaestroBeat SaberKayak VR: MirageArizona Sunshine 2Smash DrumsJob SimulatorArizona Sunshine 2Vampire: The Masquerade – JusticeGun Club VRHorizon Call of the MountainCreed: Rise to Glory – Championship EditionZero Caliber VRDrums Rock *PlayStation Store purchases only. Game upgrades or games bundled with hardware not included Free to Play (PS5 + PS4) US/CanadaAsiaFortniteArknights: EndfieldRobloxWhere Winds Meet (F2P)Rocket LeagueDelta Force (F2P)Call of Duty: WarzoneeFootballMarvel RivalsPUBG: BATTLEGROUNDSTom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege X – Free AccessAsphalt LegendsOverwatchGenshin ImpactHighguardRobloxApex Legends2XKODelta Force (F2P)Fall Guys View the full article

It’s time to see which PS5, PS4, PS VR2, and free-to-play games topped last month’s download charts. February saw nothing but love for zombies and Leon as Resident Evil Requiem topped the US and EU PS5 charts. Check out the full listings below. What titles are you playing this month? PS5 Games US/CanadaEUResident Evil RequiemResident Evil RequiemNBA 2K26EA SPORTS FC 26ARC RaidersUFC 5EA SPORTS Madden NFL 26Grand Theft Auto VCall of Duty: Black Ops 7MinecraftGrand Theft Auto VIt Takes TwoREANIMALARC RaidersEA SPORTS FC 26REANIMALMinecraftForza Horizon 5God of War Sons of SpartaCall of Duty: Black Ops 7UFC 5God of War Sons of SpartaNioh 3NBA 2K26It Takes TwoNioh 3High On Life 2Resident Evil 4EA SPORTS College Football 26Among UsNHL 26Marvel’s Spider-Man 2Marvel’s Spider-Man 2Gran Turismo 7Forza Horizon 5Split FictionHELLDIVERS 2Hogwarts LegacyResident Evil 4Kingdom Come: Deliverance II *Naming of products may differ between regions *Upgrades not included PS4 Games US/CanadaEURed Dead Redemption 2Red Dead Redemption 2Gang BeastsA Way OutA Way OutGang BeastsResident Evil 6EA SPORTS FC 26theHunter: Call of the WildUnravel TwoRESIDENT EVIL 5Resident Evil 6Middle-earth: Shadow of WarGrand Theft Auto VMinecraftRESIDENT EVIL 5Grand Theft Auto VMinecraftFOR HONORRayman LegendsBatman: Arkham KnightBatman: Arkham KnightUnravel TwoThe ForestNBA 2K26Kingdom Come: DeliveranceCall of Duty: Black Ops IIIMafia: TrilogyResident EvilIt Takes TwoGod of WarMiddle-earth: Shadow of WarThe ForestSTEEPOvercooked! 2Assassin’s Creed OdysseyMafia: TrilogyWRC 7 FIA World Rally ChampionshipSTAR WARS Battlefront IIOvercooked! 2Red Dead Redemption 2Red Dead Redemption 2 *Naming of products may differ between regions PS VR2 Games* US/CanadaEUAlien: Rogue Incursion VRAlien: Rogue Incursion VRPavlovCreed: Rise to Glory – Championship EditionCreed: Rise to Glory – Championship EditionHorizon Call of the MountainAmong Us 3D: VRArizona Sunshine 2Beat SaberAmong Us 3D: VRArizona Sunshine 2Job SimulatorJob SimulatorBeat SaberVampire: The Masquerade – JusticeVampire: The Masquerade – JusticeHorizon Call of the MountainCooking Simulator VRZero Caliber VRKayak VR: Mirage *PlayStation Store purchases only. Game upgrades or games bundled with hardware not included Free to Play (PS5 + PS4) US/CanadaEUFortniteFortniteRobloxRobloxRocket LeagueRocket LeagueCall of Duty: WarzoneCall of Duty: WarzoneMarvel RivalsTom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege X – Free AccessTom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege X – Free AccesseFootballOverwatchFall GuysHighguardAsphalt LegendsApex LegendsMarvel RivalsDelta Force (F2P)VALORANT View the full article

Hello there, everyone. Today, we are absolutely stoked to announce that the Orkiest game of all time is coming to PlayStation 5! Speed Freeks is a high-orktane combat racer – set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, featuring chaotic, brutal races, in-depth customisation options, and a totally ‘live’ creation mode where you can load into a blank canvas with your friends and play your creations in real time as you build them. I’m here with Jon Doughty, Lead Designer and Level Designer at Caged Element Inc, to answer a few questions about our PlayStation heritage, about the game itself, and of course, what it’s like working with the Warhammer license. What made you want to bring Speed Freeks to PlayStation? Chris: Well, it’s obviously a great system, but it’s also got a strong pedigree for driving games in, especially combat racers in the past. Our first game, Grip, was a spiritual successor to Rollcage. We hope Speed Freeks can usher in a new era of combat racing games, as it’s an awesome genre that doesn’t get a lot of love these days. But it’s much more than a traditional combat racer, with the types of modes we’ve made, including the aforementioned Creation Mode. There’s lots of chaotic fun to be had – we hope the PlayStation players will dig it. Play Video What do you think sets Speed Freeks apart from other vehicular combat and PvP games? Jon: Speed Freeks is a true vehicle shooter, which, unfortunately, is rare. We tried to incorporate all the vehicle combat elements we love, from acrobatic stunt cars shooting at you while halfway through a backflip, to armored tanks perched on hilltops. And then we threw some crazy stuff in: a roaming assassin trike, a Grot Mega Tank with a flipper straight out of a robot combat show, helicopters, etc. I think Speed Freeks meshes a lot of diverse vehicle combat gameplay into one very fun and surprisingly balanced game. The vehicles in this game are very agile, and their abilities make them very versatile. What made you lean into such a versatile movement? Jon: We’ve always been big on movement in games – Rocket League, Apex Legends, even the Tony Hawk series – but a lot of Speed Freeks’ movement tech was actually discovered accidentally by players, and we decided to leave it in. Vehicles give you lots of options for different movement abilities, and I think we pushed it really far with Speed Freeks, and different moves ended up synergizing, and it just went wild. Allowing most vehicles to completely redirect their momentum on a dime whenever they’re touching the ground (or a wall) basically exploded the skill ceiling, and the way that the Dash ability interacts with handbrake and some of the propulsion abilities is addicting to master – and something we’re really proud of. The main mode in the game, Kill Konvoy, is a mashup of traditional modes, but with a fun spin – plus a massive Stompa mech in the middle. How did you come to design this unique mode? Jon: We workshopped this mode a lot and ended up with this reverse Capture The Flag (CTF) mode where you pick up flags in the mid-field and take them to the enemy’s base – except the flags are bombs, of course. And their base is a walking mech. The moving base aspect really meshes well with the high speeds, and all these different roles came about naturally: there are the high-flying bomb runners, roaming defenders, suppressors that clear out those defenders, and even goalies that guard at the foot of the Stompa. If you’ve ever played the high-speed CTF mode from the Tribes franchise, you’ll know how fun this kind of gameplay can be. This game mode rules. If I had to pick the best thing we’ve done in Speed Freeks, it’s the design of this game mode and its maps, and I think our core players agree. Speed Freeks has a multiplayer level editor. Was this something planned from the beginning? Chris: Definitely not. Our core community is really passionate, constantly throwing out wild ideas for Orky environments, so we figured: let’s just give them some tools. How the editor worked really lent itself to quick iteration, and we also discovered we could have players drop in and drop out, like in any other mode. It’s actually my favourite part of the game, seeing a level being constructed in real-time with players driving around on a level while it’s being built, sometimes getting smacked by assets in the middle of being placed. It’s hilarious and a really fun, creative way to play – especially over voice chat. We also have an in-game workshop where players can upload their custom maps to the cloud for others to play, either solo or online. The team and I are really happy with how the Creation Workshop turned out. It’s kind of crazy how well and how quickly it all came together. How’s it been working with the Warhammer IP? Chris: Warhammer 40,000 is a badass property with so much lore and top-tier aesthetic to go with it. It’s intimidating, especially when you’re making something really new to the IP like our combat racing game. It’s also quite challenging since there are restrictions on how we’re able to handle the vehicles, Orks, environments – everything. I think we smashed it proppa though, as the community (and Games Workshop) really like how faithful Speed Freeks is to the Orks faction. We like to think our game is the purest expression of Orkiness around. Chris: Thank you all for taking the time to check out Speed Freeks – we’ll have more news to share very soon about the release date – until then, if you like what you see, please share the trailer with any Gitz that would cause chaos with you, and wishlist the game on your PlayStation! View the full article

Crimson Desert seems huge — not just in how much there is to do, but simply how enormous its world is. As an open-world RPG, that’s to be expected, but it’s only when you’re standing on a strange island floating in the sky, seeing the whole world stretch out beneath you, that it’s clear just how expansive the world of Pywel really is. I recently went hands-on with the beginning portion of Crimson Desert and played about four hours, and while I never made it out to the landmarks I could see in the distance, even the area in and around the city where the game begins felt enormous and full of life. Helping out in Hernand You play Kliff, a member of a faction called the Greymanes — warriors renowned for their swordsmanship and their reputation for helping others. The early part of the story takes place in a town called Hernand, where you get your first taste of just how big and bustling Crimson Desert is. Even with four hours of playtime, there was so much to do in and around Hernand that I never made it far from town. Quests in and around Hernand have you helping out various townspeople with their problems. But there are also plenty of activities and encounters to discover on your own. Often, you’ll find spots and buildings that outlaw factions have taken over, and they’ll attack you if you enter their territory. Defeat enough of them, though, and you’ll liberate the place so the townspeople can reclaim it. Clearing bandits out from different locations unlocks access to new quests and activities, too. When I drove the bandits out of a fish market, fishermen moved back in, and I was able to observe them and learn to fish myself. One of the cooler aspects of Crimson Desert is how Kliff can learn new skills not just by unlocking them from his character skill tree, but by observing them from other people. That can even happen in combat. Fast, fluid combat Fighting in Crimson Desert is a fast-paced, intense affair, with smart enemies who constantly work to surround and overwhelm you. Luckily, you’re a well-trained swordsman with quite a few abilities. Kliff can chain together fast strikes with R1 and slower, more powerful slashes with R2, but he’s also strong enough to grab enemies and throw them when you press Circle and Triangle buttons together. Crimson Desert doesn’t really contain character classes or builds — unlocking new skills just adds more and more moves to Kliff’s repertoire, which you can use by pressing different combinations of buttons. Your fighting style is more determined by the weapons you choose to use. Kliff starts with a sword and shield, but you can also find weapons like great swords, spears, axes, and more to change how you approach combat. You can block with L1, and if you time a block correctly as an attack lands, you can parry an enemy’s blow, knocking them briefly off-balance. Holding L1 also lets you lock onto an enemy, but the fluidity of the combat system means you’ll often quickly drop a lock so you’ll be free to attack in all directions. Fighting stronger opponents can increase your arsenal of abilities. Midway through one early boss battle, a knight attempted to kick Kliff in the chest — and after seeing the move, Kliff learned it, incorporating it into his fighting style. From then on, I could give enemies the boot to send them flying. The final battle of my preview was by far the toughest I faced, against Kailock, the Hornsplitter, the leader of a local merchant guild who’d been scouring Hernand for Abyss Artifacts. These are magical items that have fallen from the Abyss, a realm of floating islands above Pywel, and they imbue their wielders with strange powers. Kailock’s artifact makes him very fast and agile, while also allowing him to generate waves of magic from his weapon. Kailock makes it clear it’ll take understanding your opponents’ abilities and using skills like parrying and powerful attacks to defeat them. And thanks to Abyss Artifacts, it seems like you’ll face enemies throughout Crimson Desert with capabilities that rival your own. A strange, mystical world Following the early steps of the main quest quickly leads you to the Abyss, a place seemingly powered by some mix of magic and technology, and home to some mystical folks who’ve taken an interest in Kliff. It’s here that you start to gain special magical abilities that allow you to complete puzzles, explore the world, and gain an edge in combat. These include turning some objects weightless so you can manipulate them, picking up heavy items that would otherwise block your path, and donning a glider that lets you survive falls and cover distances. The Abyss gives the first taste of Crimson Desert’s puzzles, which often have you fixing and manipulating Abyss technology. It sounds like you’ll solve quite a few puzzles throughout the game — some in the course of the story, and others that you’ll uncover through exploration. Abyss Artifacts falling to earth seem to be a major driver for the story, and you can find them throughout the game and use them to unlock character upgrades and new abilities. But you’re not the only person hunting them and their power. Freedom to explore Beyond a short trip to the Abyss and the wilderness around Hernand, I didn’t get too far into the world of Crimson Desert, but it does seem like there’s going to be plenty of interesting things to find within the world if you’re willing to look for them. After leaping off an Abyss island to return to the surface, I floated down near Hernand’s castle and found a man hanging from a cliff. I ran over and pulled him up, and he explained that he was trying to climb down to a chest before slipping. It was a momentary encounter, but provided a clue about what I might find below. With my glider, I was able to jump down to the chest no problem, uncovering some loot that was part of another trading activity. Kliff could also climb back up the cliff with little difficulty. Your ability to climb, glide, swim, and sprint is dictated by a stamina gauge, and you can scale most cliffs and walls with relative ease, so long as the gauge doesn’t run out. You also have a horse to help you cross the vast distances of Crimson Desert. You can whistle for the horse by pressing down on the D-Pad, summoning it to wherever you are. Between your mount and your glider, you have some decent options for traversing a lot of distance quickly, but you’ll need to earn upgrades to increase their stamina, and thus, their usefulness. PS5 and PS5 Pro enhancements With an enormous, gorgeous open world, Crimson Desert can be pretty graphically demanding, and Pearl Abyss will leverage the PlayStation 5 and PS5 Pro to help deliver some impressive visuals, particularly at long distances. The PS5’s SSD is key for streaming the huge world, for a start, and developers will make heavy use of the PS5 Pro’s High CPU Frequency Mode to make viewing and moving through the world as seamless as possible. Pearl Abyss also told me it optimized Crimson Desert for the PS5 through a number of features to help maintain all that detail at its large scale, making use of Geometry Shader Oversubscription and NGG Culling to render lots of elements without losing detail. On PS5 Pro, the recent upgrade to PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) makes it possible for Crimson Desert to hit 4K resolutions at higher frame rates, and its raytracing capabilities make lighting effects more realistic and natural. The DualSense controller adds a lot to the experience, too, especially when it comes to combat. A big part of fighting in Crimson Desert is the feeling of weight, and you can feel haptics especially when weapons clash as you execute a parry or when you land a powerful hit on an enemy. The adaptive triggers also add intensity to actions like drawing back a bowstring. The DualSense additions work to bring you closer to Kliff and help deliver a lot of information, especially in tense combat situations where enemies can be all around you. Even after playing for four hours, I only scratched the surface of what’s waiting in Pywel. From vast lands to explore and secrets to discover, to formidable foes to face down and powerful skills to master, Crimson Desert looks to offer a lot for RPG fans who want to lose themselves in a fantastical world. You can see for yourself just what’s hidden in Crimson Desert when it releases on March 19 on PS5. View the full article

A few weeks ago, during State of Play, we shared the first gameplay footage of Control Resonant running on PlayStation 5 Pro. The trailer was fast-paced and focused — but it only scratched the surface of the gameplay systems at work. Play Video Today, we want to go deeper into the systems behind Control Resonant, from combat flow and buildcrafting to how progression shapes your playstyle. Stepping outside the oldest house The first Control was about isolation, being trapped inside a shifting brutalist labyrinth. With Control Resonant, we set out to invert that idea. This time, we step into Manhattan as paranatural forces tear through the everyday world. The city is under escalating assault. Architecture warps. Gravity fractures. Familiar streets twist into unstable combat arenas. While many civilians have evacuated, the Federal Bureau of Control remains active in the field, attempting to contain the crisis across distinct, handcrafted zones. You’re not alone, even if the situation feels overwhelming. One of the new characters you’ll meet is Zoe De Vera, an FBC field agent who acts as Dylan’s handler. Dylan has spent years isolated inside the Oldest House; Zoe has survived the chaos outside. Their relationship — built on trust, responsibility, and learning to rely on others — anchors the emotional core of the experience. We’ve also introduced a seamless dialogue system that allows conversations to unfold during exploration, keeping you immersed in the world. A world designed for choice Our take on Manhattan is divided into carefully designed zones, each with its own vibe, encounters, lore and secrets. We are not into an open world where looking at the world map causes anxiety. Less is more. We want to fill the world with interesting, fun stuff to do instead of tons of grind. There are two primary narrative quest types: Dylan’s Journey – the main campaign World Quests – self-contained narrative stories Beyond these, you’ll find combat encounters, environmental challenges, hidden discoveries, and optional activities woven naturally into each area. Maybe you chase down an Altered Item or two… The goal isn’t to “clear” the map — it’s to explore it on your terms. Combat built on momentum Expanding player expression in combat was central to our design. Action now leans more heavily into melee and supernatural synergy. At the heart of it is the Aberrant, Dylan’s transforming melee weapon. It shifts between distinct Primary and Secondary Forms, along with powerful Combo Enders, allowing you to tailor speed, range, and combat role within a single build. But combat isn’t just about weapon forms. It’s about momentum. In Control Resonant, aggression fuels power. Melee hits restore your Combat Ability resource Abilities stun enemies, opening them up for executions Executions temporarily boost melee damage The more you commit to close-range pressure, the more tools you gain to stay in control. It’s a loop designed to reward decisiveness and flow. At the same time, different playstyles are fully supported. For example, you might lean into a heavy close-range build or opt for a more tactical setup using summons like Mold Turrets, which attack independently and apply harmful status effects. For players who love optimizing, detailed stat breakdowns make build performance transparent and readable. Shaping identity in the gap Progression centers on meaningful specialization. Outside combat, players can enter the Gap, a dreamlike space tied to Dylan’s psyche, simply by pressing down on the directional-pad of the DualSense controller. This is where you shape your build. Your setup revolves around three core pillars: Supernatural Combat Abilities, earned by defeating powerful Resonants Weapon Forms for the Aberrant Talents that amplify synergy between abilities and melee attacks Resonants are major boss encounters integrated into story progression. Defeating one grants its unique ability, and some offer branching choices that push you toward distinct playstyles. These aren’t the only systems at play, and not everything can be unlocked in a single playthrough — that’s intentional. ​​ More to come There’s much more to share about the story, characters, and the larger paranatural forces reshaping Manhattan. We’ll dive deeper into those elements in the months ahead. For now, we’re excited to share how Control Resonant is evolving into a full-fledged action-RPG – one where momentum fuels strength, specialization shapes identity, and Manhattan becomes a surreal battlefield. View the full article